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Fin chuckled. “Nay. I suppose not.”
“So? What were your other reasons?”
Fin looked down at the ground, and Ivy thought he looked self-conscious… something she thought impossible for a man as bold and brash as he. Somehow though, he did, and she found it adorable. She thought it made him a little more real as a person in the sense that rather than being an immovable, unemotional stone - as he sometimes seemed to be - it showed him capable of feeling the same sorts of emotions as her. To Ivy, that made him all the more appealing.
“I wanted tae see ye,” he finally said.
Ivy’s heart turned somersaults in her chest as her stomach roiled wildly, a feeling like something alive inside of her. Feeling her cheeks flare with warmth, she looked away, unable to keep the smile from her lips.
“To see me? Really?”
“Aye,” he replied. “I enjoyed talkin’ tae ye back in York and thought we might speak again.”
She gnawed on her bottom lips, trying to control her body and her wildly churning emotions, which seemed to be growing increasingly out of control. But she stood up straight and did her best to keep her mask cool and composed.
“I enjoyed our conversations as well,” she replied, and then added with a grin, “at least, after that first couple of days.”
“Aye. We got off tae a rough start.”
Ivy’s smile widened. “We did. But I am glad we were able to overcome that.”
“Me tae.”
Fin’s smile faltered as they drew near the keep, and he seemed to tense, and his expression darkened.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Dae ye ken the river ‘bout five miles tae the west?”
“The Turnee. It is the border with York,” she said.
He nods. “Aye. That’s the one,” he confirmed. “There’s a village just past the river. Tis hidden by the forest.”
“The ruins of Therline,” she said. “It was destroyed by the Scottish…”
Realizing what she had just said and worried about how he might take it, Ivy bit off the rest of her sentence and felt her cheeks flush as she looked away. Fin laughed heartily and seemed to bear her no ill will, which made her feel somewhat better.
“Aye. That’s the one,” he said. “And aye, me people treated it roughly durin’ one war or another.”
“There was rough treatment on both sides of the war,” she replied. “But at any rate, what of Therline?”
Fin cut a glance around them, his features growing tense. He looked this way and that as if searching for somebody who might be eavesdropping on their conversation. Only when he was satisfied nobody was listening in, did he speak.
“I was hopin’ ye’d meet me out there tomorrow afternoon,” he said.
Ivy felt her face grow warm at his suggestion they meet alone. It sounded positively scandalous. As shocked as she was by his brashness, there was something deep down inside of her that was intrigued as well. Ivy swallowed down a laugh of surprise at her own brashness and tried to keep her face from bursting into flames. Ivy took a moment to gather herself and gain control of her swirling emotions.
“That is a highly inappropriate suggestion, Fin,” she said. “It is very improper.”
“Aye. I know it is. And I apologize for bein’ so bold, but isnae what ye think,” he replied. “But I wouldnae ask ye if twas nae important.”
She cocked her head as she regarded him. His request, though improper, was not what she had initially assumed it was. His tone was neither salacious nor flirtatious; it was serious and perhaps even grim. Ivy felt a lurch in her belly and suddenly felt a prickle on the back of her neck, as if somebody was watching her.
But she saw nobody lurking in the shadows or hiding behind bushes. Apparently, Fin’s paranoia was bleeding over into her.
“And what is so important that would lead you to make such a bold suggestion?” she asked.
“I need tae speak tae ye,” Fin said, his voice grave. “But nae here.”
The tone of his voice set her on edge and filled her with a sense of dread she could not understand, let alone explain. But it worried her.
What could he have to speak to me about that he cannot say here?
Ivy was about to tell him no, but her body betrayed her, and she found herself nodding. Something about the idea of being alone with Fin, away from the prying eyes of her brother and all his servant spies appealed to her.
“Yes,” she said. “I will meet you at Therline.”
Fin gave her a grateful smile, but there was an extra glimmer in his eye that nearly made her breath catch in her throat.
“I thank ye.”
